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Thursday, 31 January 2013

Student commits suicide in Etah, alleges caste slur by cop in note

Excesses
of police and management of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya forced an
intermediate student, who was a Dalit, to commit suicide in Etah on
Monday night.

The
parents of the victim, who held police and the management responsible
for the death, also alleged that the accused used caste related remarks
on students which led to the incident. While the district administration
ordered a high-level probe, Navodaya Vidyalaya was said to be closed
after students went on rampage and ransacked the offices of principal
and other staff. A case was also registered by the police.

Reports said that the dispute started when Veena Jain, warden of the
Girls Hostel of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Etah, warned one student
of Class XII, Asheesh, after he developed an affair with a girl studying
in his Class, on last Thursday. Agitated with this, Asheesh and some
other students reportedly threw stones on Veena Jain’s house after which
the local police came into picture. They rushed and dispersed the
students.

On Monday morning, Asheesh’s roommate Shubham, who was involved in the
stone-pelting, disappeared from the hostel after leaving behind a
suicide note. When the college authorities learnt of it, they informed
the police in panic but after a few hours, Shubham was traced at his
aunt’s house later in the evening.

Reports said that after Shubham was traced, Subodh Yadav, incharge of
the local Rijore police station, reached the college and thrashed some
students including Asheesh and one of his friends Raj Kumar and also
hurled abuses on them for indulging in criminal activities rather than
concentrating on studies. However, soon after the police left, Raj Kumar
left another suicide note and absconded. The cops first took it as one
more drama by the students but after a few hours, they were shocked when
body of Raj Kumar was traced hanging from a tree.

In his suicide note, Raj Kumar accused both cops and college management
(SI Subodh Yadav, principal RP Sharma and warden Veena Jain) for
harassing him following which he decided to end his life. The recovery
of body spread like a wildfire and within no time hundred of students
gathered and attacked the college office besides blocking the traffic.